jnm2kse

Seriously

My Max has 70K on it and for some reason the rotors keep warping after 3k of being changed.....so the Max and its 300.00 per month payment have to go....

GT fully loaded including leather, moonroof etc a smidge over 14k

Laugh if you want but this thing is a blast to drive! Over at Edmunds it is hard to find someone bad mouthing one of thses cars unlike the Maxima boards.

Thing is zippy as all hell

I dunno...I just might....best they can do on a trade is 11-11500 for the Max or so....pretty crappy eh?

Havent read a bad review from any of the auto rags either...

I'm telling ya...go test drive one of these...you'll forget the Hyundai name

TimW

iTrader: (6)

I know someone that bought a hyundai.. and had it totalled the next day. The ins. company paid 2K less than what he had just paid. The said it had already depreciated that much and it was all they were willing to pay out on the car. Thats like unheard of.

Personally, I would take a max with 70K over a new Hyundai. Sure, alittle of that is pride, alot of it is safety. The max is just plain engineered better in every way.

but hey, you gotta do what best for you. Truthfully, if you gotta save some cash and can be happy in less of car, more power to you. Putting any car over family or your financial stability is weak.

d_warner

If you try torqueing your lug nuts properly and not slamming on the brakes at 150 mph, your rotors wouldn't be warped. Overtightened lugs is the leading cause of warped rotors.

2M0A0X2

i love hyundais, especially the tiburon

but i would stick witht the maxima....hyundais are really good cars though

TimW

iTrader: (6)

yes, this is mostly true.. But I have heard from a tech that there were also some material defects. it seems that some of the metal was softer than other parts. I think that lugs and environment accounted for 90%, but there are a few that apparently will just wear til warped :/

MaxTuner

you gotta be kidding rite!
it's like telling ppl, why buy Japanese cars if you can get a China made cars for 1/3 of the price...

d_warner

It still seems hard to believe that he would be changing rotors or turning them every 3K mile though. Correct me if I'm wrong, but you canonly turn rotors 2 or 3 times before you get out of spec. If he's got 70K miles and he's warping every 3K miles. Sounds like he should've been able to get at least one good set of rotors.

TimW

iTrader: (6)

I have found that if you dont torque your own lugs by hand and let a shop do it, there is a 99.9% chance they will over tighten them. So, I'm not really disputing what you said.

Yeah, I dont think he's had 13 sets of rotors I'm not really sure when/if Nissan sourced them differently after finding the problem with materials. They may have decided the material defects were low enough that they didnt change anything. Unsure.

I keep a torque wrench by the spare. Mine required turning at 36K. Then again, there also talk of the pad material used causing excessive heat and warpage now.. :/

ABQMAX

Then tune the cr@p out of it. Put turbo, chip, and some NItrous.....Then pull up to 2k2 and start giggling

irvine78

iTrader: (2)

uh..eh...it's actually made by Koreans..not Chinese..

i actually saw a blue Elantra GT with lowered suspension and 17inch rolling stock with an exhaust..it actually looks good.

if you want an excellent warranty and good transportation, Hyundai is actually quite good. they're definitely getting better(even the car magazines love'em these days. the new Elantra just got ranked 2nd best among its class only bettered by Mazda Protege'...even ranked better than the CIVIC!!!), but Maximas still a class above it.

P.S. and i'm Korean so i can't be a racist!!

jnm2kse

Well I wish I could go 150mph and not worry about putting my *** through my engine block but such is life.

Here is the history of my brakes so there is no mystery...my oem rotors started to warp around 18k(like about 60-70% of the folks here judging by the threads on it), not horrible but a definite pulse. At 28k I couldnt stand it anymore and after arguing with the morons at the dealership over the friggin TSB they agreed to cut them and hell they even threw in new front pads. Less than 8k later they were warped again.

At 35960 miles I limped into the dealer again before my 36k warranty expired and told them about the problem. They cut the rotors again but I know they didnt do it according to the TSB. The TSB says either you have to cut them while the rotor is on the car or off, I can't remember which but they did the opposite. The brakes felt ok aftrewards but I picked up a vibration like my tires were OOB. I asked them about it and they just shrugged their shoulders. Ever since that day my car has never felt right even after putting brand new tires on it about a month ago.

So......about 7k after that here comes the pulse back......I waited until I couldnt stand it anymore, I mean to the point wher if I hit the brakes at any highway speed the damn wheel would literally bounce out of my hands. I was damned if I was going to get Nissan rotors again so I went to a shop near my folks house. The guy has a great rep and he put new Bendix rotors on the front and pads all around. He stated as you did that you should never use an impact wrench on alloy wheels, yada, yada....ok fine.

That was at 60k...4k later..pulse, pulse, pulse...I was like wtf! Back I went to him and he put BRAND new rotors on again for me and reminded me to hand tighten my lugs...no problem. Well here I am about to turn 70k and yep...pulse, judder, judder.

I am at a loss to explain wtf is happening...

I did have an accident last March where I rear-ended someone(I was found not at fault believe it or not)....Could I have messed up the front end so it causes the brakes to warp as in something is out of kilter? Could me waiting to the point of the vibration being so bad that some other front end components could have been damaged caused warping?

Between these issues plus getting married, buying a home and inheriting 2 kids, 3 bills a month is putting a dent in my budget....

I know it's real easy to quarterback and crap all over the Hyundais from the couch...hell if you told me 2 weeks ago that I'd be looking at Hyundais I would have given you a triple take. After checking them out my thinking has changed 100%....nowhere nice or roomy as a Maxima but definitly not a POS on wheels. You get quite a bit for your dollar and the build quality is there. Compare one to a Sentra...Elantra hands down.

Heck I'm going back Saturday to drive a whole bunch of them again....going to try the Sedan 5spd and an auto also.

I'm starting to babble and lose my point but bottom line is I'm not abusing the Maxima and it's letting me down basically with the brakes which is a bummer.

Talk about depreciation... 11,000 dollars in 2 years on my max...ugh

Check out Speedvison...Hyundai seems to be winning an awful lot of this road type races etc...

KL99SEA

iTrader: (1)

I got a real 14,000 trade on my 99SE three months ago, 48,000 miles, (just repaired from an accident on front end) and a broken off antenna! They offered 13 first and I said 14...they started *****in about the accident and the antenna (they said 350 to fix antenna)so I started to walk and they said ok. This was a lease I traded in so they actually purchased my car. If the put backend money in the trade I still know I got at least 13,500 for my trade. Everyone can ***** but my stripped 99 could have been bought new for like 20K and in 3 years I still got at least 13,500 I AM HAPPY. It had no leather or bose. My 03 has had 4000 trouble free miles. Much nicer.


And sorry but I laugh at Hyundai's in part to the guy that said they are Mercedes quality. (My neighbor) I can guarantee that man had never driven a Benz.

jnm2kse

Benz? Hardly

But then again Benz has their share of problems and at the cake you lay out for one of them...eeeep

I wouldn't say benz but I wouldnt hesitate to mention it in the same breath with Sentra, Corolla, Civic. Not for all the extra stuuf you get with it.

Apparently Car and Driver doesn't mind either

TimW

iTrader: (6)

you are not going to get top dollar on a hyundai lot for your car. Seriously, they are not going to see any 'value' in the maxima. Thats not the kind of lot they are. Their cars are so cheap, if they paid you what it was worth, then tried to resell it, their new cars would be cheaper. Try a private sale. or even another lot that might want to buy it outright. Many will, used car sales are strong again.

Heck you might get an extra 5K and get your new car for 'free'... kinda

jnm2kse

They have a 2K GLE and 02 Alty on the lot...it is a rather large dealership with about 5 or 6 makers under 1 roof spread out over quite a few blocks. It is called AutoFair in Manchester NH. Ita not a little hyundai lot..it shares the dealership with Honda in this location.

To be honest the 11K is about 2k more than KBB states it is worth and I thought KBB tended to be high. Edmunds TMV is about 12k so I'm right inbetween.

I doubt even a Nissan dealer would give me much more and I've ruled out private sale because A) I want to do all this within a week and B) I dont want the hassle of the private sale given the issue with the brakes.

I'm probably done with nissans for awhile anyways..I've had a car from all 3 of the Big Boys from Japan(Honda, Toyota and Nissan)and the Nissan has given me the most grief by far.

I'm zeroing in on the Elantra because it fits my budget, I like the looks and can't beat the warranty. and damn it, this little bugger does not have any problem with the giddyup

I'll probably just fish at a few other dealers for trade quotes...who knows maybe something else will catch my eye and pocket. belive it or not I could just as easliy settle into an Impala or century..yeah I know FOP cars but talk about comfort

But for the same $$ I can have a brand new car loaded to the gills

TimW

iTrader: (6)

ahhh, I see.. the mileage and manual really take you down...like almost 4K. ouch.

Nyc2kMax

change the rotors to cross drilled this should clear the problem right up

swallac2

Remember, they laughed at the Japanese cars 20 years ago. Now look, they have Detroit runnin. Initially when they came to this country the Japanese had poor quality too, that all changed, just as it is for the Hyundai's.

My question is why don't you just spend the 300 bucks and switch to a better rotor and pad, i.e. not a Nissan OEM set? The Maxima is more refined and an all around better car than the Hyundai.

jnm2kse

I already did that....twice...I have Bendix rotors on there....that was also the set that was on there before....good ole made in the US of A steel rotors

Dont think cross will solve it...

Car has some front end issues to keep warping rotors like that

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

First of all, Bendix brand is your NAPA parts brand, the brand they use at Midas and Meineke, which doesnt last long, no matter where its made. I would base your decision on other factors than just bad brakes.

Even with you doing a lot of driving (70K in 3 years?), in 3 years you gonna have a 150K mile 6 yr old Maxima. Check out the prices right now, a 96 Max with 150K mi maybe worth 5-6 grand. Then check out the prices on 99 Elantra with 70-80K mi, these things cost like $3-4 grand.

What kind of damage did you have in that accident? Is there a way to tell you're having probs with front and not rear brakes? Did you try to rotate tires, or change rims?

jnm2kse

ok, I didnt know that about Bendix.....I mean the brakes feel great for the first 4k and then they feel like crap...is this a common sympton of Bendix(Napa, Midas, Meinke) rotors? I mean they aint jiggling like mad but I can tell they will in another few thousand miles.....

I lived on Cape Cod and was commuting to north of Boston = 200 miles per day so thats where all those miles came in. Now its about 85 miles per day since I'm in NH so my miles will slow a bit.

I had the tires balanced when I put new rubber on them at a VIP. I have Dunlop Sport A2's now. Same rims, I have 16 inch wheels not the 17.

I'm not sure what to do as I really don't have any "performance shops" near me and I'm not about to try to do brakes myself. I also don't want to shell out another 500 clams for something that may not solve the issues of this car.

The accident was mostly cosmetic as they put a new hood, headlight and fender on....still ran about 2400 bucks in damage. Not sure if I could have tweaked the frame at all.

The rear rotors are still the original.....but if the rears were warped wouldnt I feel it in my butt rather than the pedal and the steering wheel?

if I could have it fixed I would, just not too confident that the problem can be found

MNMax

What about Sonata GLS? I saw a brand new one in our work lot two days ago and it's sweet lookin. Looks like a Jag. It was a metallic charcoal color with nice wheels, leather, woodgrain, very upscale looking vehicle for the price. If I was buying new again, I would seriously probably buy one. No they're definitely not a Max, nowhere near a Max in performance terms, but if you're talking pure value for the dollar, warranty, etc, plus a lot lower payment, I think the Sonata is the ticket. Build quality may not be Benz, but I'd stack it against a Max for panel gaps, squeaks, etc. My buddy has a 01 Elantra with 20K miles and it has less creaks, squeaks, and problems than my 00 Max SE. Max is the better car, but Hyundais are definitely overlooked. IMO they're 3x better than GM crap. Time will tell.

my .02

Maxima06071

They have neato Knock-off Skyline GT-R Head lights and everything!
No seriously get it. Hyundais aren'r half bad.But as far As I'm concerned a 2003 Volvo S60 2.4T Is my next car....Mmmmmm. My Ex-next door nieghboor just replaced his landrover discovery with one. It is sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooVerrrrrrry verrrry nice. and he's leasing it for only $339/month...and zero down.

Y2KMaxGXE-R

iTrader: (4)

I will never buy any of generic brands such as Bendix, NAPA, PAPA, etc because my experience has been with my prev cars 3K mi and need to turn rotors. You should have went with OEM parts from Nissan dealer.
Have you done any work to your rear brakes? Some may not agree, but I would say if your rear brakes are badly worn, you would get a pulsating pedal. It wont be as bad as if the front brakes are worn, but still.
Have you ever hit a curb with your front wheels? Usually the tire guy can tell if your rim is bent when balancing the tire. Try to switch front and back tires, see what happens and let us know.

Really, you took such a big hit on your Maxima financially that you need to get more of your moneys worth, drive it for another 2-2 years so you can save.

deadrx7conv

Hyundai's quality hasn't changed at all and their resale is a joke. The dealers around here always try to avoid warranty repairs. If you buy a Hyundai, please perform meticulous maintenance and keep all your receipts. You will need them for arbitration when something breaks(which will be frequently). Also, any mod will void your warranty. Hyundai dealer network sucks. And their mechanics are even more incompetent. Read up on the lemon laws in your state. You will be able to quote paragraphs each time you visit the dealer for service. I am having a vision of the future. I predict that if you buy the Hyundai, you will become a lemon law Zealot.
Also, if you are serious about the Elantra, RENT one for a week. You will understand. I think that I got one from Enterprise(or was it Hertz), don't remember. But, I broke it in 3 days and it was brand new when I got it. I also killed an Accent in one week.

Car magazines should not be used for choosing cars. They usually do not buy and own the cars. If they(editors/writers) were making payments out of their weekly pay, I bet that their decisions would change quickly.

Don't get all happy about vehicle content. You are better off with the Corolla/Sentra/Civic.... They will have enough of the options and the new Corolla is superior than the Elantra, just as fast(er), super reliable, has trade in value,....... What the hell does the hyundai have that is so much better than the Civicorralentra? Drive all four. With the current economy, all dealers are wheeling/dealing.

Concerning your bigger, safer, faster, funner, more comfortable Maxima, replace your calipers/rotors/pads/hardware-all together. Something is hangingup/binding/overheating etc. Could also be a master cylinder that is not retracting all the way. I doubt that the accident caused brakes issues. Also, get real pads like EBC/PerformanceFriction/Hawk etc... Some are available at tirerack. For rotors, use any and get them cryo'd. Try onecryo/frozenrotors/300below/stopyoucold etc...

I vote for the Max with real pads and chilly rotors. Give the Maxima one more chance.

max988

Love the Maxima. My 03 is my third Maxima. I still have a 87 Maxima SE. Unless Hyundai put a V8 in that Hyundai and priced it much lower than its competition.....

big h

iTrader: (1)

well, just bought a 2003 tiburon GT (V6). And i must say it is fun to drive and i was impressed with the interior and the fit and finish. But to each their own... By the way, i still have my Max (My baby), the wife has the Tib.

dpf618

Hayundai?
No matter how much you polish it, you cannot shine sh-t.

soopermax02

You are way off. I've owned two new Hyundais and I have been extremely pleased. Every experience I have had with Hyundai dealers has been orders of magnitude better than any Nissan dealer, I assure you.

In fact I laugh at your post, you are spewing ignorance. No one knows better about having terrible resale value than a new Maxima owner.
http://forums.maxima.org/showthread....ghlight=resale

No paint chips on my Elantra that is 3 years old and has 55k miles.
http://forums.maxima.org/showthread....ghlight=resale

Want to compare dealerships? Consumer reports ranks Hyundai in the top half. Nissan is in the lower half. Fact is the warranty is superior in every way; 5yr/60k VS 3yr/36k Bumper to bumper, 5yr/unlimited VS none for roadside assistance, and to boot a 10yr/100k powertrain.

And to be brutally honest they have about the same aftermarket support as my Maxima.

And with a turning radius literally about 1/2 that of my Maxima.

Want to talk safety? The elantra has standard side air bags. Optional on my Maxima. Compare crash test results at Edmunds.com and you will see the Maxima offers nothing in safety when compared to Hyundai vehicles of similiar size.

Don't get me wrong I certainly choose my Maxima over any Hyundai; but you are way off base with your post. Hyundai is not the car company it was just a decade, or even 5 years ago. They are the largest company in Korea, and they actually make more money on selling tankers than they do cars (at least they did in 2000). They also operate LG electronics, makers of cell phones, memory and various other electronics.

I have always had friendly knowledgable service from my Hyundai dealer. When I dropped off my Hyundai for body work I was offered a loaner car; wasn't the case for my Nissan. This may reflect an individual dealer, so this is a moot point.

soopermax02

However one thing is certain:

Hyundai doesn't make the VQ, SR, or RB series engines. They don't make anything close. The VQ is an engineering feat. No question after working on both cars the Nissan is a much better engineered machine (at a 2x price, but even this considered the engine in my mind is worth the cost differential).

I also prefer the styling of the Nissans.

Good luck to you in whatever you choose. Like my Hyundai dealer always says: "People who don't own one will tell you how terrible they are, and people who do own one will tell you how great they are". And I've found it to be true. You can never please everyone but the majority of owners I've personally known have been very surprised. Edmunds.com had a long term vehicle for 18 months and raved about it the entire time.

irvine78

iTrader: (2)

obviously your neighbor is a little too happy..
but at least one company stands behind its customers..

jnm2kse

Well I went back to Auto Fair and drove a couple of Elantras again...a regular GLS with automatic and the GT again.

Forget about the automatic.....I can't bring myself to do it....not even for that price.

The GT is another story...I'm telling you...what a FUN car to drive...night and day between it and the GLS auto. Literally fly thru the gears smooth as silk and it is torquey as all heck

Leather, am/fm cd/ power everything, ABS, 4 wheel discs, moonroof....NO RATTLES even on rough surfaces power heated mirrors and the unbelievable warranty...all for a price of 15.3K.... Hmmmm


I can't pull the trigger.....the car is an absolute blast to drive but that could just be instant gratification on my part. If it was 2k less it would be in my driveway tonight.


I stopped by a local Nissan Dealer in Nashua and asked about a brake job. I asked him if he heard any bad stories about Bendix rotors and he just shrugged his shoulders...quoted me 550 for just the fronts. Ouch....

I'm gonna shoot myself if I fork out another half a grand on this car and it doesn't solve the problem. I still swear that the Nissan tech frigged up the front end when he cut the rotors a second time....is this possible? Could he have bent something just enough to cause rotors to warp so quickly?

Ever since he did it I have this little vibe ....like OOB but even with tire rotations and new rubber it still rides a tad rough......

I'm sorta of in no mans land as I owe 9K on the car and was offered 11k on a trade-in...yuck.........

The new Spec-V is really sharp looking...hmmmm....lol who am I kidding...

Man...I wish I could solve the brake issue but like I said, I'd hate to have the rotors switched out again(theses flipping ones only have 4k on em) and have the judder monster rear its ugly head in 4k again.

I thought midas, meinke etc used cheap *** Chinse steel and that Bendix was supposed to be a decent American made rotor? What is Stillen made out of, titanium? American steel is American steel right?

Ok here I go babbling again

Maximam

This is what comes to mind when someone says Hyundai.......

big h

iTrader: (1)

"This is what comes to mind when someone says Hyundai......."

funny this is what comes to my mind...
http://www.newtiburon.com/yabbse/index.php?board=18;action=display;threadid=5469;start=0

big h

iTrader: (1)

oops that didn't work, try this
http://community.webshots.com/album/52305517iohrjt

soopermax02

Have you checked www.edmunds.com or price comparably equipped models at places like www.carmax.com or www.autobytel.com? I wouldn't be surprised if when you start bargaining that price comes down a lot.

Triple8Sol

iTrader: (29)

I gotta disagree on that point. The used car market sucks right now. It's good if you're buying, but not if you're selling. With the great pricing and financing you can now get on a new car, less people are willing to pay kbb value for a used car. I'm having a hard time selling my old car, so I am definitely experiencing it...

As for Hyundai's, not to knock your potential purchase, but I will never buy a Korean car. (I'm Chinese btw). I can't bring myself to buy something with the brand name, no matter how nice the car is someday. One of the many reasons I chose the Maxima over the Altima. That's just my materialistic opinion though.

soopermax02

Triple8Sol I agree with it being tough to sell a car now.

All of these 0% offers have swayed a lot of people who would otherwise buy used, into buying new.

swallac2

Is this what you think of when you hear Nissan/Datsun?

http://www.datsunworld.com/b210/LORIE_2.jpg[/IMG]

or maybe this

http://www.datsunworld.com/610/610MEDL1.jpg

They are both Nissan/Datsun's, remember things change.

deadrx7conv

Spewing ignorance? I speak from experience. Two rental lemons and my GF's brand new Hyundai Elantra never worked. It ended up being traded in(after 6 months) for an incredibly(cause I hate GM) reliable troublefree Sunfire. Talk about tradein loss.
I don't consider the resale value of the Maxima poor. The tradein value is. But, the tradein value for most cars are. And, with the current economy, its getting worse.
Plus, from what I remember working in car sales, most people overpay for their vehicles. It was my job to screw people because of the almighty word "commission". I quit sales because it was unethical.
If one person got a good deal, this affects the resale/tradein for everyone who got screwed. Todays newspaper showed SE/GLE 2003 new Maximas for $4000+ under MSRP. For people who pay MSRP or have trade ins, too bad. Several months ago, I saw almost $6k discounts on new 2002 Maximas. Those who need financing, who have tradeins, questionable credit, whatever, will always suffer and usually don't get great deals. Dealers screw them alot. They make a profit on the car they are selling to you, and they will make a profit on the tradein that they will sell, and they will make a profit on the loan.

Paint chips aren't just a Maxima issue. I had paint chips on every car I have owned. Usually its caused by driving to close to the car in front of me or by all those winter sanding trucks. I think that if people kept their distance(difficult in a powerful car driven by inexperienced speed mongers), they would have less rocks bouncing off their bumpers, hoods, windshields etc.

I also don't care for magazines or collected opinions. Dealer ratings don't mean squat. Hell, my opinion doesn't mean squat either. But, I will share it, just like you shared yours. See the thread name--Elantra--whadda ya think? So I gave my opinion. Too bad that your Nissan dealer sucks and that your Hyundai dealer kisses a$s. Customer service is an issue that almost every dealer needs to work on.

Aftermarket support? Who said that there isn't any? Mod away and watch that super warranty disappear. I don't need an extended warranty. I need a reliable car. I can't remember a time that any of my Nissans needed warranty work. Maybe its because of my preventative maintenance or driving style? Maybe its because I am lucky!

I also don't care for Hyundai's diversification. Any company with credit can buyout other companies and stick their name on it. It doesn't mean that they are great.

Talking safety, weren't those side airbags recalled for not working in 2001? How many people got slammed before forcing a recall? Want safety? Visit this website and compare the 2001-2 Elantra to the 2001-2 Civic/Sentra/Corolla/Impreza.....
http://www.hwysafety.org/default.htm
Too bad it can't be compared to the Maxima(different size). I'll take my chances with the heavier car in a 'car vs car accident'. Physics is in the Maximas favor. I avoid crashing my cars and never hit immovable objects. Yeah, Hyundais are safe

Also, I will repeat myself. If you want to buy it, rent/borrow it first to make sure you like it. If you buy it, maintain it and keep receipts. Read the warranty's small print. The dealers around here tried to void the warranty every chance they got. Actually, most dealers, regardless of make, around here are like that.